SANITY SAVERS: Tips for Women to Live A Balanced Life is in bookstores and is filled with suggestions to save your sanity every day of the year.

A must for any woman seeking to find her balance!

In trying times, and even in good times, the need to be a part of a group of people with like interests and who are going through a similar life experience can be invaluable. Nobody but someone who has had a similar experience knows what it is like to, for example, survive the death of a spouse, lose a job, face a debilitating illness, be dependent on alcohol, or raise a child alone. In a support group you can convey your apprehensions and projections, and share ways to approach everyday challenges. Regularly meeting with those who have similar issues or concerns helps to develop a feeling of belonging and gives strength as well as helpful ways of approaching and /or coping with what one faces in life. Support groups generally provide an environment where participants feel nurtured, strengthened and encouraged.

For some of us, expressing and sharing feelings about our lives is difficult. To others, it is culturally inappropriate to discuss personal matters either at all or outside of the family. Even for those of us who do not have personal or cultural constraints, it is hard to communicate feelings of fear, confusion, skepticism, and mistrust even to those who are helping us manage whatever is our challenge.

Support groups can be powerful and valuable influences on the participants. Among other things, participants learn that they are not alone. Knowing that some other person is experiencing similar feelings and thoughts is a relief. Although you do not know the people in the group when you begin, close connections can form just because someone is facing something similar to what is happening in your life. And just that awareness allows you to accept that the scary parts of life appear to be a bit less threatening when they are navigated with others who have been through or are going along a similar road.

People gain companionship and understanding that emerge naturally from sharing experiences in a support group. Participants, reaching out to help one another, work on solving problems in a non-threatening setting. Since the purpose is to offer support and information that is specific to their interest, friendships develop based on mutuality and similar ordeals. Information is exchanged while people develop confidence in themselves. Slowly they learn to adapt and give meaning to their new role or challenge. Over time, at your own pace, you get the message that you are not alone and that you can do what is required of you.

Countless people report changes in their relationships, in their feelings about themselves and their families, in their understanding of the impact of whatever the issue is they are facing, and in their manner of communication when they participate in a support group. Support groups work because people feel better and more capable in them than alone.

"A shared joy is twice the joy. A shared sorrow is half the sorrow."
-Parent at John Tracy Clinic Support Group

TODAY Show (NBC)
November 3rd: Marriage and How to Make it Work

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Women's Group of Temple Israel
November 5th, 11AM: Speaker, Sanity Savers: Live a Balanced Life
14 Coleytown Rd., Westport, CT

The Women's Auxiliary of the Jewish Home for the Elderly
November 6th, 12PM: Featured Speaker, Sanity Savers
175 Jefferson St., Fairfield, CT

41st Annual Jewish Community Book Fair
November 8th, 7:30PM: Featured Guest Speaker, Sanity Savers: Tips for Women to Live a Balanced Life
Buffalo, NY

See article on Sanity Savers in the November, 2007 issue of The Beauty Magazine
http://www.thebeautymagazine.com/pdfs/issue10.pdf

See also 28 Ways to Relax at www.parents.com.

Eating Out for Health

For many people on the go (and who isn't these days?) fast-food places can become the norm when we have to eat on the run. Instead, why not stop at the health food section of a grocery store or deli that has prepared meals low in salt, sugar and saturated fats and select something that is not only good for you but also tastes good? Try to visit spots that have at least two or more soups piping hot and loaded with vegetables and legumes. Order a sandwich on whole or multi-grain bread. Eat colorfully by adding plenty of greens, carrots, red or yellow peppers, and grapes or strawberries to a salad. You can get a day's worth of fruits and veggies while on the go and keep your body's engine in great shape.

Take charge of your health and well-being as you experiment with food and portions when you eat out.

Life is going along swimmingly. You feel beyond blessed. Lucky, really. The sun shines on your path. And then Pow! Wham! You discover that you have an illness that you need to monitor because the assessment is that it will be with you for the long haul. How can this be? You ask yourself over and over. You go back and forth about fair and unfair and faith and what did you do to deserve this and on and on. You ask questions but don't get much satisfaction in the answer department. And then you realize that life is full of surprises; some are terrific and some really tough to take. How to move forward?

Consider these tips:

The most important thing that happens between God and the human soul is to love and be loved.

Kallistos Kataphygiotis